Sushi, Sushi, Everywhere: New Menus at RA and Sapporo

Fans of Asian cuisine will be excited to hear that two Valley hotspots, Sapporo and RA Sushi, have revealed new menus for the new year.

Lunch

Sapporo Scottsdale’s Executive Chef Stephen Stromberg is offering a brand-new lunch menu, featuring an assortment of Pan-Asian small plates, bowls and the Three Sum special, for which, guests are invited to choose three options from three different categories, with options including Thai mussels, calamari French fries, sesame chili egg noodles, egg fried rice, spicy long beans and more. Additional new items on Sapporo’s menu include a chili beef bowl with teriyaki steak, a grilled teriyaki salmon salad, and the seriously flavorful Pad Thai Tacos, with your choice of seared sea bass or hoisin barbecued pork, Pad Thai slaw, sriracha remoulade and avocado served in a rice paper shell.

RA Sushi has also added a couple of new dishes to the RA Tapas section of its menu, which now includes the garlic sugar snap peas and delightfully fiery shishito peppers, both sauteed in Asian seasoning. Additional RA Tapas favorites are the salmon carpaccio with wasabi aioli, and the seared tuna with a creamy soy dressing, sesame seeds and Japanese rice cracker bits. Another great RA option for lunch is the new Otoko Salad, a bed of mixed greens with your choice of beef or grilled chicken tossed in a spicy yuzu dressing with grilled red and green bell peppers, onions and asparagus, topped with a rice wine vinaigrette, watercress and fried ramen noodles.

Sushi

The people have spoken, and RA Sushi has heard their cries: By popular demand, the Pacific Roll makes its return — a spicy mix of albacore tuna, cilantro, jalapeno and cucumber, rolled and topped with fresh avocado and mango salsa and finished with red beet tempura bits and sauteed cashew nuts. And to rival the flavor of RA’s Las Vegas Roll comes the “RA”ckin’ Roll, featuring kami kama crab and cream cheese rolld in rice and seaweed, lightly tempura battered and topped with guacamole and “RA”ckin’ shrimp, finished with a creamy ginger teriyaki sauce, red beet tempura bits and togarashi. Additional new rolls include the Vegetable Tempura Roll and the sumptuous Tropical Roll — our personal new fave — with cucumber, mango and avocado, rolled and topped with spinach tempura bits, and spicy shrimp mixed with masago and mango salsa.

Cocktails and Dessert

Sapporo has debuted a new Liquid Market cocktail program, intended to highlight seasonal ingredients. We’re impressed with such concoctions as the Cucumber Sage Martini, Gingered Bourbon Lemonade and Fiji Apple Sangria, but what really blew our hats off was The Sapporo Torch, a shareable cocktail made especially for two with Myers’ Rum, Bacardi Rum, Cointreau, Velvet Falernum, grapefruit and lime juices, and served with a flaming lime half floating at its brim.

At RA Sushi, you’re not going to want to miss out on the Sweet Mochi Trio after we tell you it’s a combination of mango, strawberry and vanilla ice cream wrapped in a sweet rice cake and garnished with sliced kiwi and strawberries — so much fun! And don’t forget the cocktails — we tried a Ginger Blossom that was ultra-refreshing, with Hendrick’s Gin, St. Germain, muddled strawberries, pink grapefruit, lime juice and a splash of ginger ale. Additional new cocktails include the Elderflower Smash (with a blueberry taste), the Emperor’s Cucumberita (lime and cucumber), and the Red Lotus, a delightfully tart martini. Plus, RA has just introduced Sake Maki Mondays, meaning all day, every day, guests can enjoy two sake selections and two sushi rolls for just $20.